U.S. News released its 2012 best medical schools report today. The lead article in the med school component of the rankings reports a few of the highlights. You’ll see that Harvard Medical School again snagged the first place spot among the best research universities. While that seems to be pretty constant year-to-year, there were…
MEDICAL SCHOOL ADMISSIONS
A Six-Item Checklist before Hitting “Submit”
WAIT! Don’t hit “submit” just yet! You may think you’re done with your Round 3 MBA or EMBA application, but it can’t hurt (unless you are literally at the deadline) to go over it one last time to make sure that all elements are intact and that you’re submitting compelling, articulate work that truly represents…
Make the Most of Your Interview Day
Sit in on classes, check out the library or the computer clusters, hang out in the student lounge, or take a walk outside to see what the local community is like. Sitting in on classes is critically important. Not only will you learn how the classes are taught, but you can observe the dynamics between…
Do Not Answer Your Interview’s Questions With One-Word Answers
Often applicants are nervous about the interviews. It is okay to be nervous and even to admit that you are nervous, but be careful that your anxiety does not get the best of you. The interview is your chance to really “sell” yourself. Answering your interview questions with one-word answers will not allow your interviewer…
Do Not Give “Canned” Answers to Interview Questions
Although it is important to practice your interviews, interviewers are looking for genuine, unforced answers to their questions. You do not want to sound rehearsed – and please, do not answer their questions with answers that you think they want to hear, instead of what you really think or feel. There might not always be…
In your medical school personal statement, do not generalize, criticize doctors
Do not forget that physicians will be reviewing your application; therefore it is probably not a good strategy to suggest that most physicians are incompetent and you are going to be the ideal doctor and will rescue our health care system. Also, be mindful of the fact that the people evaluating your application have many…
Do not make Excuses for Poor MCAT Scores
Right after the MCAT scores are released, phones go wild in medical school admissions offices. It will not help to panic over disappointing scores, or to call or e-mail blaming your scores on “bad sushi” the day of the exam. Take responsibility for your disappointing scores, and be honest with yourself and the medical schools…
Plagiarism in Residency Essays: Just Don’t
The WSJ’s Health Blog recently posted “Study: Medical Residency Applicants and Plagiarism” which cites a study in the Annals of Internal Medicine by a team of researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. The researchers found “evidence of plagiarism” in 5.2% of residency application personal statements by comparing the essays to publicly available material…
Do Not Blame Your Professors For Your Poor Grades
Do not try to make excuses for your poor grades or try to defend them. If you are invited for an interview, be prepared to discuss those grades, but instead of placing the blame on someone else, focus on the positive and perhaps highlight your academic performance since then. Emphasize what you learned from the…
Do Not Quote Robert Frost in Your Med School Personal Statement
Be original. Quotes from Robert Frost are very popular on medical school applications. You should probably leave him out of the process. You can be serious or use a bit of humor, but be creative, original, and yourself. One student, with research experience in entomology, began his essay by comparing the different roles of ants…
Admissions Resume: What to Include
Recently in “MBA Admissions:The May-October Romance,” I suggested that applicants for Fall 2011 entry begin assembling materials for their applications now – a full five months in advance of the first fall deadlines. One of the ideal documents to begin now is a resume, something that any professional should always have updated and at the…
Medical School Admissions: Apply Early!
Medical school admission is very competitive, so you must get your applications in early. Schools with rolling admissions review their applications as they come in. As students are accepted, there will be more and more competition for the smaller number of remaining spots available. Admissions committees will then have a greater number of other applicants…
Take Advantage of any “Second Visit Day” Opportunities at the Medical Schools to Which You Have Been Accepted
“Second Visit” or “Second Look” days are great opportunities to revisit the medical schools that you are truly interested in. This time you will be more seriously evaluating what each medical school has to offer you, what makes it unique, and whether it is the right “fit” for you. Since you are no longer being…
5 Tips for Essay Writing: Plan With a Calendar, Not an Egg Timer
The blogger of MBA on the Horizon recently noted the irony of her situation: after devoting months to prepare for her MBA applications, including attending information sessions, reading blogs, and researching through other means, she ended up cramming all her essay writing for Wharton into a single weekend. A Saturday marathon writing session produced a…
Is Early Decision Right For Me?
As you prepare for the med school application process, you may be wondering whether applying Early Decision (ED) is appropriate for you. The (frustrating) answer is, “It depends.” Schools with ED programs usually consider only the strongest candidates for ED; scores and grades which are acceptable for regular applicants won’t cut it. There’s some risk…
Grad Admissions: Helicopter Parents
The New York Times published an article this week “Letting Your Grad Student Go “ on the phenomenon of helicopter parents in graduate schools admissions. Yes, I mean graduate, not undergraduate, admissions. I have a dual perspective on helicopter parenting. I have been working in graduate admissions as a private consultant for the last fifteen…
Financing Your Future: New Ebook
Financing Your Future: Winning Fellowships, Scholarships and Awards for Grad School, by Linda Abraham and Rebecca Blustein, shows you how to get the financial support you need to attend the graduate school of your choice. In Financing Your Future, an instantly downloadable ebook, you’ll learn about: Different types of scholarships. When to apply for financial…
Coming Soon to Accepted.com!
Coming soon to your local, handy-dandy computer screen: A whole new Accepted.com. Yes folks, Accepted.com will have facelift. (I decided I didn’t want one. May be needed, but too painful. I’m chicken.) Check back on Monday morning, maybe even Sunday, and you will find a brand new and improved Accepted.com with: Improved navigation and ease of…
What Does It Mean to Write from the “Inside Out”?
After devoting many days and countless revisions to his 250-word Stanford GSB Reliance Fellowship essay, the blogger at MBAdreamz concludes: “The mantra for writing essays should be bringing one’s ‘INSIDE OUT.’ The more one knows and reveals (about himself) in the essays, the more comfortable and confident he would be with the essays.” Having worked…
Financing Your Medical Education
You’re undoubtedly familiar with the customary ways of financing medical education – loans, grants and scholarships. Service commitment programs, which provide financial assistance to enrolled medical students or residents in return for physician services after completion of training, may be news to you. Perhaps you’ve heard of the Armed Forces Health Professions Scholarship Program and…